In a new editor’s note for InMaricopa, Associate Editor Monica D. Spencer writes about how a simple introduction at a Mexican fast food restaurant near her office changed a routine she had followed for years.
Spencer said she had been visiting the same spot weekly for three years, usually ordering carne asada fries with three sides of tomatillo salsa. Over time, the cashier and kitchen staff came to recognize her usual order, and she became a familiar face in their lunch rush.
One windy October afternoon, she finally learned the names of the people she saw each week: Belen and Jesus. Spencer wrote that the exchange was brief, but it turned a regular interaction into something more personal and made a difficult week feel a little lighter.
Her note also points to a larger theme in the magazine issue: how small moments of connection can create a sense of belonging. She says those brief interactions in everyday places can matter more than people realize, whether they happen in a shop, a hallway or during a conversation with someone we’ve seen many times before.
Spencer says she will probably keep ordering the same meal and keep getting the same quiet greeting and nod in return. The piece first appeared in the November issue of InMaricopa.
